Minutes:
The Mayor thanked Cr Mazzarella and Cr Ward for their nominations and read the following statement:
I wish to sincerely thank my fellow Councillors for their unanimous support in electing me for a fourth term as Mayor of the Yarra Ranges Council. I’m extremely honoured and proud to once again be able to lead a Council that will be passionate in their collaborative approach to represent their constituents but also to protect and enhance this amazing place that we call home, Yarra Ranges.
I wish to acknowledge Sophie Todorov for her exceptional role as Mayor for the past twelve months, I also extend our sincere thanks to David Eastham as Deputy Mayor for the past 12 months and of course to my fellow Councillors who have represented our Yarra Ranges communities over the past Council Term of four years.
Now we have a new Council, and I extend an extremely warm welcome to Councillor Jeff Marriot (Streeton Ward), Councillor Mitch Mazzarella (Melba Ward), Councillor Peter Mcilwain (Lyster Ward) & Councillor Gareth Ward (Chandler Ward). I am sure you will have no regrets on the decision you’ve made to represent the residents of Yarra Ranges.
Together in the coming year we will be delivering more than 120 services to our community and delivering them with passion and a keen eye on how we’re able to keep costs down while still meeting the needs of more than 150,000 residents, thousands of businesses, and countless visitors. I’m proud to say that we’ll be able to do this while navigating the challenges of the past pandemic, while assisting and facilitating storm and flood recovery of our communities, and while facing a dual impact of inflation and rate capping.
Visitors to the Yarra Ranges region are expected to double to over 9 million per annum in the next decade. We will be advocating for Federal & State Government to support vital services and projects that strengthen our communities, provide quality infrastructure, and create local jobs for local people. That’s why we’re asking for the continued support of our Ridges and Rivers projects - consisting of the Yarra Valley Trail, RidgeWalk, and Warburton Mountain Bike Destination. These projects, on completion will deliver 500 jobs & $80M per year into the local economy. That’s a boost our businesses need.
We as Council will be shortly finalising the development of the 2025-2029 Council Plan and the longer-term Asset and Finance Plans. These plans outline the high-level priorities for Council, including how we manage our finances and assets. The goal of these key plans is to advance Yarra Ranges towards the future outlined in the Community Vision. We as Council and community are building this Council Plan and together we can deliver it.
I’d also like to thank our Chief Executive Officer Ms Tammi Rose and the staff of the Yarra Ranges Council who have contributed so much to our communities through the challenging periods of post pandemic, and ongoing storm & flood recovery.
In closing there is one other person I must thank, who keeps me on track (especially in recent times), a confidant and makes everything happen at home and she is also in the Chamber tonight. Teresa, with much love thank you.
Thank you all.
Supporting documents: